1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to methods for distributing content to devices substantially contiguous to a person or device.
2. Background of the Invention
Changes in the electronic distribution of audio and visual content have created an environment in which end-users have increasing control over the means by which they may hear, view and interact with any given digital content. Through the use of various methods that incorporate wireless and Internet technologies, for example, Apple's iTunes system, music may be downloaded into handheld wireless devices and stored in a persistent manner so that it may be listened to at some future time. Audio, video and combined audio-video content may also be downloaded into handheld wireless devices and then stored in a persistent manner so that it may be listened to and viewed at the user's discretion. Additionally, once stored, such audio-visual content can readily be transferred to other devices via simple commands.
In all cases where wireless cell phone devices are used to send, receive and store audio-visual content, one of three scenarios occurs. The first scenario involves the transfer of audio and visual content to another wireless cell phone device from a server, service or other wireless cell phone device acting itself as a server in a client-server relationship. The second scenario involves the transfer of audio and visual content from a wireless cell phone device acting as a server to one or more servers, services or other wireless cell phone devices acting as clients in a client-server relationship. The third scenario involves the use of a cell phone to control media devices by using wireless protocols such as SMS or Internet services such as Web browsers to request that media be sent to a specific device based on user requests.
At this time, the ability of a wireless cell phone user to control the distribution and delivery of digital content to physically contiguous audio and video devices is limited to a request-response model that does not allow the user to continuously interact with contiguous audio and visual display devices in real time over the Internet.
Orange France has created a service that allows customers of bars, restaurants and other businesses to choose a song from an SMS music menu to be played at the customer location. This service does not, however, provide a means to have the music sent to a speaker system located in direct proximity to the user. Neither does it provide the means to make selections using a cell phone and to have music videos provided to a visual display device and speaker system located in direct proximity to the user.
AT&T, Inc. provides subscribers with the ability to control their digital video controllers through Web-enabled phones by scheduling or deleting recordings on their in-home set-top boxes. This service does not, however, provide users with the means to control the dissemination of content to contiguous audio and display devices that may be located in public venues, such as airports and malls. Furthermore, this control mechanism is dependent on the presence of an in-home set-top box to display the audio and visual content. In other words, it does not allow content dissemination over the Internet to contiguous devices in real time.
In U.S. Published Patent Application No. 20070136778, Birger, Joffe and Netchitailo generally describe a method to use an apparatus with a processor, memory, a display screen and an input device to accept user input from a user, the use of which is to control the operation of multiple devices for purposes of playback on the part of each device. There is, however, no reference to the use of a wireless cell phone device to accomplish the same or similar tasks. Furthermore, the invention set forth does not allow the user to use the apparatus to control the dissemination of content over the Internet in public venues. As with the prior cited references, this one, too, is deficient.
None of the presently-known methods of wireless cell phone content delivery addresses the complexity of a distributed audio-visual user experience, i.e., both individual and multiple persons experiencing the same or similar content simultaneously or substantially simultaneously through respective contiguously located devices. Specifically, the prior art fails to demonstrate any method or system that disengages wireless cell phone users from the constraints of traditional audio-video media delivery by allowing the user of a wireless cell phone to interactively control the real-time delivery of audio-visual media to multiple audio devices, e.g., within hearing or other ranges of the cell phone user, and/or multiple visual display devices, e.g., within line-of-sight view of the wireless cell phone user, through the use of controls commonly-available on a standard wireless cell phone over the Internet.
There is, therefore, a present need to provide an improved paradigm for managing the distributed, multi-tier, real-time delivery of audio-visual content using a wireless cell phone that overcomes the aforementioned constraints of existing media distribution techniques, and that exploits the enhancements of the new technologies offered.
It is, accordingly, an object of the present invention to set forth an improved paradigm for the distribution of digital media using a wireless cell phone device as a controller.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method and system for a wireless cell phone device user to specify the devices to which the audio and visual components of audio-visual content will be transmitted.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method and system for a wireless cell phone device user to specify the devices to which the audio components of audio-visual content will be transmitted independently of the devices to which the visual components of audio-visual content will be transmitted.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method and system whereby a wireless cell phone device may be used to control the concurrent, synchronous, real-time delivery of visual media to one or more display devices of the same or dissimilar type and to one or more audio devices of the same or dissimilar type.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method and system whereby a wireless cell phone device may be used to interact with audio and visual content that is being heard though one or more audio devices of the same or dissimilar type and seen through one or more display devices of the same or dissimilar type.